In the newly-launched Horizon Forbidden West game, players once again take control of Aloy, Ashly Burch's heroic character from Horizon Zero Dawn. The weight of the world is on Aloy's shoulders for a second time. But does she have time for romance this time around?

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Much like the first Horizon Zero Dawn game, Horizon Forbidden West has plenty of characters that players might like to imagine in their heads as potential romantic partners for Aloy.

From the loveable Sun-King Avad to Aloy's trusty pal Varl, or perhaps even the fierce hunter Talanah, there's no shortage of people that could pair up with Aloy, at least in your own imaginary head-canon. The moustachioed Erend was something of a favourite last time, too.

But does the game actually allow for Aloy to fall in love this time around? Keep on reading to learn all about the Horizon Forbidden West romance situation.

Are the romance options in Horizon Forbidden West?

No, Horizon Forbidden West does not have romance options. You will not be able to engage in any love stories with Aloy.

These days, many big AAA games find space for romantic storylines — some even give you multiple partners to choose from — but this particular franchise from Guerilla Games always seems to buck that trend.

Why is there no romance in Horizon Forbidden West? Well, just as she was in Horizon Zero Dawn, it seems that Aloy is too busy saving the world during Horizon Forbidden West to have any interest in pursuing romantic relationships.

Hermen Hulst, an executive that has worked for Horizon developers Guerrilla Games and its parent company PlayStation Studios, was quoted as saying in 2017, "Aloy is very driven. She was born an outcast and she is a woman on a mission. She really was not gonna waste her time in this game."

Hulst went on to say that he has "heard that request [for romance]. People are interested for her to explore her romantic interests [but] it’s not something she particularly had a lot of time for in Horizon Zero Dawn." And that still seems to be the case today in Horizon Forbidden West.

Another potential reason for Aloy's seeming lack of interest in romantic relationships may have been found in one of the final spoiler-filled scenes from Horizon Zero Dawn. In that first game, Aloy learned that she is the genetically-identical clone of a long-dead scientist names Dr Elisabet Sobeck.

As a player named Benard Quek pointed out on the Quora forums, "Dr Sobeck didn’t have any inclination for a relationship and thus her clone, Aloy wouldn’t have it any other way.

"In the end cut scene [of Horizon Zero Dawn], Sobeck explained to Gaia she never had time to have children, so the romance part was not essential for Aloy." This is a fan theory, of course, but it does have a nice ring to it.

Add her genetic inheritance to the massive extinction-level events and Aloy's lonely upbringing as an orphan, and it's easy to see why forging romantic relationships wouldn't be her number one priority during these games. Perhaps it's not something she's interested in at all.

Again, though, there's nothing to stop you theorising among your pals as to where Aloy's affections could lie, if she wanted to pursue them and the world wasn't always in danger of ending on her watch. Perhaps one day, in a DLC or another sequel or perhaps even the Horizon Call of the Mountain VR game, we will actually find out.

How does Horizon Forbidden West push Aloy's relationships further?

There are other types of relationships beyond the romantic, though, and it certainly seems like Aloy's non-romantic character relationships will be pushed in new directions by Horizon Forbidden West.

Returning character Varl definitely has a beefier role this time out, even getting his own Focus gadget in the game's opening quest and joining Aloy in a number of fights against those pesky animal-shaped robots that plague the land. Erend is returning and getting his own Focus, as well, which is certainly a step forward for his character.

Another key returning character is Sylens, who continues to be something of an ambiguous presence, capable of both helping Aloy and creating major threats that put her and the wider world in danger. It is a development from Sylens that forces Aloy to travel west in the game, and it'll be interesting to see how their love/hate (but mainly hate) relationship changes as this new story unfolds.

The Sun-King Avad makes a return, too, which will be particularly among his fans from the first game. Talanah returns, as well, in what is promised to be an expanded role. With another massive problem threatening all Earthly life in the game, we'll certainly watch in interest as Aloy has to find a solution while navigating so many fleshed-out characters. Who's got time for romance, anyway?

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